Of Sandalwood and Lipstick
by Mrs. Elizabeth Gibbs
Summary: Tag to 'Dead Irish Writers'. Jed and Abbey talk about her voluntarily forfeiting her license, and wind up in the bathtub.


A/N: I was actually kind of disappointed in the lack of Abbey at the end of season three, so I've watched 'Dead Irish Writers' a couple of times, and this idea wouldn't leave me alone. A little smutty, a tiny bit angsty (but not really), and also a little sweet. Let me know what you think!

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters of the West Wing; I simply like to play my hand at being the President and First Lady occasionally.

* * *

It may not be her birthday just yet, but she certainly felt older.

The alcohol she'd drunken with CJ, Amy, and Donna was making her head pound; the lights were much too bright as she walked back to the residence. Her dress rustled as she walked back to the residence, the Secret Service agents a few steps behind her.

Jed was saying goodnight to Leo and dealing with a few final memos before bed, and would be in the residence a few minutes after her. Shutting the doors behind her she sighed, closing her eyes to make the spinning stop.

She needed to get out of this dress; it suddenly felt too tight against her chest and the room was too hot. She reached behind her back and fumbled for the zipper- she jumped when another pair of warm hands covered hers and helped drag the metal tab down. The sleeves fell away, and her husband pressed a kiss to her bare shoulder.

"You looked beautiful tonight," he said softly, hands sliding the sleeves of her dress the rest of the way down her arms. Abbey hummed quietly in approval, enjoying the feeling of his hands on her skin. He pressed his lips to the back of her neck, his nose brushing her hair. "We need to talk, Abbey."

Abbey sighed, tilting her head backwards slightly and closing her eyes. Moving forward she stepped out of her dress, the green and brown fabric gathering around her feet. Picking the gown up she threw it across the back of one of the chairs, running a hand messily through her hair as she took a deep breath.

"I really don't want to talk right now, Jed," she said, squinting at the bright lights. Jed noticed and hit the dimmer switched, allowing her shoulders to relax and her headache to lessen slightly. "Thank you."

"A little too much to drink tonight, hot stuff?" Jed asked, raising an eyebrow as he loosened his tie and began to unbutton his shirt.

"I may have had a little too much of that wine with the girls and not enough food," Abbey admitted, padding over to the closet and slipping into her robe. "Where are the candles?"

"Candles?" he asked, eyebrows furrowing slightly as he thought for a moment. "Bathroom cabinet, I think."

Abbey nodded, tying the robe as she walked to the bathroom, appearing a few moments later with two thick white candles and a box of matches. She set the candles down on the bedside table and opened the matchbox, striking a match and using the flame to light the two candles. Extinguishing the match with a sharp flick of her wrist she tossed it into the garbage, taking a deep breath.

"Sandalwood?" Jed asked after a moment of the candles burning, tossing away his shirt and working his belt out of the loops.

"I'm hoping it helps with the throbbing between my eyes," Abbey replied, sinking down onto the edge bed and placing her head in her hands. "I'm too old to get this drunk."

"Ah, you're not too old, sweet knees," he remarked, eyes sparkling at his innuendo. Abbey snorted and rolled her eyes, looking up when she heard his pants hit the floor.

"I thought you wanted to talk," she said, raising an eyebrow.

"I thought you didn't," he countered, his eyebrow motion mirroring hers. She sighed, rubbing at the bridge of her nose.

"It's what needs to happen, Jed," she replied quietly, pressing her palm into the side of her neck as the other rested on the edge of the bed when he sat next to her on the bed. "You know that as well as I do."

"I don't want you to be unhappy, Abbey," Jed said quietly, his hand covering hers on the sheets. "I can't stand seeing you miserable."

"It's just another four years, Jed," Abbey replied, slipping her fingers between his. "I can survive being just 'Mrs. Bartlet' for another term. Donna made a good point that I hadn't realized."

"What was that?" Jed asked, his thumb running over the back of her hand lightly.

"I was a doctor when I was giving you the drugs- I was a doctor when I was lying. I need to remember that, and accepted the consequences," she answered, voice thickening slightly as she finished. "I just…Jed, I'm terrified of not being the one in charge of your medication, of not being the one treating you. Everything is going to be different- everything is changing. Jed, this second term could kill you."

She saw him swallow and cringed at her choice of words, but she knew she needed him to hear this- she needed him to know how she felt.

"I can't base my campaign off 'could', Abbey," he said gently, his blue eyes studying her face. "A lot of things _could _happen in the next four years- we both know that. Things will be different, yes- but not everything. Not everything has to change, sweetheart."

Jed brought both his hands up to cup her cheeks, his thumbs brushing underneath her eyes.

"You're always going to be the most important person to be, Abbey," he whispered, the sincerity in his voice bringing tears to her eyes. "That's never going to change."

Abbey swallowed, leaning forward to press her lips to his, needing the reassurance of his kiss- a reassurance she knew she was always going to need. He tasted like smoke- he'd snuck a cigarette before coming upstairs, but she ignored that, instead focusing on the way his lips felt against hers.

"What do you say to a bath?" he asked against her lips, pulling back slightly to look into her eyes. "We can bring the candles and Sinatra."

"Are you trying to seduce me, Josiah Bartlet?" she asked, cutting her eyes up to him in amusement.

"Am I the one seducing you, or Sinatra?" he asked, a grin splitting his face when she tilted her head back and let out a soft laugh.

"You know I can never say no to Frank," Abbey replied, standing up and tugging him up with her. Pulling him closer she pressed her lips to his again, grinning when he groaned. "You grab the CD and I'll start the water."

Half an hour later the tub was full and brimming with bubbles, sandalwood and jasmine candles were burning, and the jazzy strains of 'It Had To Be You' were playing softly in the background. Abbey turned when she heard Jed close the bathroom door, eyes running along his body as he brought the towels he'd grabbed over to the counter.

With gentle hands he removed Abbey's robe, and then bra and panties, allowing her to tug off his boxers with nimble fingers. He cupped her face in his hands, pressing his lips to hers in a kiss that promised more to come later. She took his hand and led him to the tub, getting in in front of him and sinking into the steaming water gratefully.

"How long has it been since we had the opportunity to take a bath?" her husband asked, grabbing a washcloth and running it gently over her skin.

"There's a significant difference between having the opportunity and not taking it," Abbey murmured in reply, closing her eyes and tilting her head back against his shoulder. "I miss doing this together."

Jed pressed a kiss to her shoulder, moving along her skin to kiss along her jaw. The washcloth ran along her arm, slipping down to trace a line down her breasts and stomach, lingering around her abdomen. Abbey gave a soft moan of approval and turned her head to meet his lips, encouraging him to move lower with one of her hands, directing him where she wanted him.

"_With all your faults, I still love you."_

"You know this might be easier in the bed," Jed murmured quietly, one hand cupping her breast lightly in the sea of bubbles as the other continued his ministrations below the foam of bubbles, eliciting soft moans and gasps from his wife that he couldn't get enough of.

"When have we ever done anything the easy way?" Abbey gasped in reply, her hand tightening around his thigh as his fingers danced over her clit.

"You make a good point there, babe," Jed answered, kissing her pulse point as he sped his fingers up. "It's your birthday- we'll do whatever you want."

"It's _not _my birthday yet," Abbey protested, though her conviction was lost as she broke off with a gasp.

"Think of this as your pre-birthday gift, then," he amended, easing her body towards the release he could feel she needed. "You're close Abbey- let go."

Abbey tensed, his voice low in her ear as he pulled her to the edge, her control being threatened. It had been too long since they'd done this- since they'd been like this. Things had been so strained since the announcement of the re-election campaign, and they hadn't truly fixed things and brought them back to the way they were until this moment. It just felt so right when they were together- she felt complete, whole when he was with her, when they understood each other.

He read her body language as she broke, moaning his name as she threw her head back against his shoulder, breath hot against his skin as she panted, eyes closed.

"I love watching you come apart," he said, kissing her forehead lightly. She turned her head to kiss his neck, breathless.

"You're way too good at that," she replied, opening her eyes to reveal dark irises hazy from her release. He laughed, grinning as he held her close. "I'm not complaining, but should I worry that woman would throw themselves at you if they knew that those fingers were good for more than just signing presidential documents?"

"Nah," Jed answered, shaking his head as he pulled the drain to allow the water to begin to flow out of the tub. "I save my skills for you, hot pants. I like the way you say my name too."

Abbey snorted, the ends of her dark hair sticking to her neck as she caught her breath, leaning against his first chest.

"I should really give you another lecture on smoking since you seem to have ignored my last five hundred, but instead I think I'll just tell you to get your ass in bed so I can make you say my name the way I like," Abbey said, voice tinged with amusement and sounding more than a little coy. Jed's eyebrows rose, and he suddenly couldn't get out of the tub fast enough. Abbey smirked, feeling victorious, standing up in the receding water and taking the towel he offered her. Wrapping herself in the thick white cotton she stepped out of the tub and dried her feet on the bathmat, watching Jed as he dried himself.

"Jed?" she asked, drying the ends of her hair as she watched him straighten up.

"Yeah Abbey?" he asked in return, taking her hand and tugging her back to the bedroom, the bed suddenly seeming a lot shorter of a walk than before.

"You had lipstick on your collar all night," Abbey answered, watching his eyes widen slightly before confusion took hold. "I just thought you should know. From the elevator. When you decided you really liked my earrings. You had lipstick on your shirt collar all night and Leo's never going to let it go tomorrow."

Jed rolled his eyes, yanking away her towel and guiding her between the sheets, holding himself above her.

"To a night of sandalwood and lipstick," he said softly, causing her eyes to crinkle happily and her lips to find his. "Happy Birthday, Abbey."


End file.
